The Hounds Below

While it still hinges on the bracing, reverb-y wallow of Jason Stollsteimer's vocals, the Hounds Below's sound is fuller, bolder, and less possessed of indie rock yawp than that of Stollsteimer's other gig as the longstanding leader of the Von Bondies. Here, he rocks keening Orbisonian moments over flights of hollow-body guitar, the drums usually just a chip on the shoulder away from a bandstand backbeat, and the Hounds' palette enriched by organ and even touches of brass. It's an invitingly gooey situation: like most things in Stollsteimer's world, darkness and light are dueling again, only this time it might soundtrack an alley knife fight between ten dudes in wingtips and black flannel suits. Burn rubber. With the Mess Around. Thu., Aug. 12, 8 p.m., 2010